Month: January, 2011

by mollykl

If I could look like anyone, anyone, in the world, I would have to admit that I would not be politically correct or self-aware or any of that bullshit and say “myself.” I want to look like Keri Hilson.

I think she is, quite possibly, the most beautiful woman in the world. While on a day to day basis I’m relatively content with the way I look, if I had my druthers, I’d look like her. For those of you that don’t know me (um, do I have any readers that DON’T know me? Probably not…) I am a 42 year old, white-anglo-saxon-protestant-and-looks-it, 5’6, 160 lb, , mother of a 4-year-old, who has to color her grey roots every 4-6 weeks (but I do it every 8). There is NO WAY IN HELL that even with cosmetic surgery I am going to look like Keri Hilson in this lifetime.

So where do we get our standards for beauty? I don’t mean the standards that we hold as a society (and try and tell me we don’t have them as a society), I mean our personal standards. Why don’t I want to look like someone a little more in reach, i.e. white, brown hair, hazel eyes?

I think it’s partially exposure. In high school I was very aware that all of the popular girls were black and I, obviously, was never going to really fit in. Yeah, I had, again, the mouse brown hair cut really short and the pale skin with freckles. I knew I was never going to be one of the pretty popular girls, but damn I wished I could be. Corn rows were really popular – it was 1985- and all of the cheerleaders had them with yellow and blue beads (our school colors) – and here I was with the most spectacularly dull brown hair that was, due to an unfortunate perm, cropped very short. Throw in my glasses and braces and it’s a wonder I emerged with any self-esteem at all.

If the familiar shapes our notion of beauty, then how do we fit ourselves into that particular picture? And what if we can’t?

by mollykl

by mollykl

Son J, whom I affectionately refer to as “the walking disease vector”, gave me his cold. I have now had it for longer than he did. I would like to point out that I NEVER got sick until I had a kid. I’m just saying. But now I have a horrible sore throat and a cough (which this morning’s pea-soup fog did not help, thank you). So with ad day over I’m off to sit and read and drink hot lemonade, the only good thing about being sick.

2 tablespoons sugar (or honey)

heavy splash lemon juice

hot water to mix

If you want you can add a splash of whiskey, but don’t use scotch! Irish or Bourbon will do nicely.

P.S. oh, and one more nice thing about being sick – my voice goes into Lauren Bacall-land, so at least for a week I sound sexy as all hell.

by mollykl

My new years resolutions are usually more of a “to-do” list. Things I want to accomplish etc (and no, losing 15 pounds isn’t on there.) And while I contemplated putting it up here, I thought better of it. So here’s a list of the things about 2010 that made me happy (in no particular order), and here’s to 2011.

1. My Kindle, yeah, husband J bought me one, and I totally love it. Want to know the main reason why? I can read the trashiest romance novels known to man and NO ONE CAN SEE WHAT I’M READING. Because I password locked up that puppy, so even if my husband goes snooping he can’t see my book list. BWAHAHAHA!

2. Our new house. I thought I didn’t want to live in the suburbs. I thought I didn’t want a 2-story house. Well, I thought wrong. It’s so perfect I can’t believe it…and it’s all ours.

3. My Levi’s, because it had been years since I owned a pair and I forgot how comfortable they are. And I also forgot how great they make my ass look.

4. My new glasses. Not being able to wear my contacts sucks, but I love these glasses.

9. Meljean Brook’s The Iron Duke (The Mongols use nanotechnology to invade England! Could that be any fucking cooler?)

10. Larissa Ione and UGH.

11. The Native Star. ’nuff said.

12. Charles Finch and Charles Lenox.

13. Varitek returning to the Red Sox.

14. The Shady Lady and the Sazerac.

15. My Clairsonic Mia. I love that damn thing! Even though I’m embarassed that I spent that much money.

16. Our statue of the Buddha in the nook in the front entrance. I just walk past and I feel better. I can’t really explain it any better.

17. Moleskine planners. I used to have a Franklin Planner, but I really didn’t need anything that complicated. I like this – it’s compact and has nice paper. It also doesn’t look like it should have nuclear launch codes in it.

18. The piece of Jack’s artwork he brought home on which he wrote “I am special because my momma loves me.”